[Healthy for Life] 10 tips

For most of my life I have struggled with weight. As a freshman in High School I realized I wasn’t comfortable with my weight and wanted to make a change. With inspiration from ‘Seventeen’ magazine I made an effort to watch what I ate and found a workout routine that worked for me. Since then, I have lost and kept off 30 pounds by continuing to explore healthy eating habits and using, but constantly altering, my workout routine!

Here are 10 lessons I’ve learned along the way!

Eat fresh: Grab fresh fruits, veggies, and breads instead of the over processed products. Make your own baked goods, its way more fun and you’ll know what is in them!

Make it balanced: It’s so true that you need a balanced diet! Get enough protein to keep your energy up, and make the right decisions to protect yourself in the future.

Drink water: Personally, I struggle with this one but it’s so important. Drinking plenty of water will help brighten your complexion, flush out the toxins and keep your metabolism active.

Multiple small portions: Eat small portions more frequently throughout the day. This in addition to the water will help keep your metabolism on task. More frequent snacks will reduce the chance of your body storing extra fats. That is because your body will trust that you’ll give it more nutritious food very soon!

Eat foods that make you feel good: That greasy burger might make you happy by soothing a craving but will it make your body feel good after? For me, this means in the morning I have fresh fruit and a dairy because grains and starches make me feel heavy. But for people who are lactose intolerance dairy wont make them feel good. Listen to your body and I promise it’ll tell you what you need to know!

Spice it up: Use natural herbs and spices to add flavor to your dishes instead of salts.

Add color: The easiest way for me to tell if a meal is good for me is if I look at my plate and find it to be colorful. Make sure you see the variety and vibrancy of fresh choices.

‘Treat yo self’: Life isn’t black and white, sometimes you’re going to splurge on a not so healthy meal and it’s totally okay! You can’t block out those tasty treats for the rest of your life. The test is not your splurge but your reaction to the splurge. Are you going to make it an excuse to keep eating poorly? Or will you make sure to be careful the rest of the day?

Love your body: Don’t dream of having someone else’s body, dream of having a healthier and toned version of your own body!

Find your workout routine: [With #9 in mind] it’s not enough to just dream of that body; you have to do something about it. Figure out if you feel more comfortable in a gym, at the park or in your home and keep moving!